MERIDIAN, Idaho — Saturday is National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, giving Idahoans an opportunity and way to dispose of expired or unused prescription drugs safely.
The Meridian Anti-Drug Coalition (MADC) partnered with the Blue Cross of Idaho to hold its Spring Take-Back event in the Blue Cross of Idaho parking lot. Saturday's drive-through event was sponsored by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA).
Idahoans were encouraged to drop off any prescription medications that could be dangerous, including tablets, capsules, patches and other solid prescriptions.
"This is a really simple way for community members to chip in and help dispose of medications. This reduces the chances of abuse and diversion of medications," Meridian Police Department Substance Abuse Prevention Coordinator, Kendall Nagy said. "We find in the data that we look at for youth, the majority that abuse prescription medications do so and get those within their own home. So, it really makes a difference to safely dispose of them and get rid of them as soon as we're done using them."
Around 800 pounds of prescription drugs were disposed of by Meridian residents at last year's Spring Take-Back event. 745,000 pounds of prescription medications were disposed of across national take-back events last fall, according to MADC.
The DEA started the initiative in 2010 to provide the public with an accessible and anonymous way to properly dispose of medications that are highly susceptible to misuse, abuse, and theft.
This year, local law enforcement, community coalitions, and prevention partners worked together to organize Take Back Day collection sites across Idaho, providing communities with accessible and convenient opportunities to drop off their unused or expired prescriptions.
The medications dropped off during the Spring-Take Back event in Meridian will be booked into the evidence vault at the Meridian Police Department before being safely disposed of.
If you miss your local Take Back Day and need to dispose of prescription medications, visit the Idaho Office of Drug Policy website to find year-round drop-off locations. Nagy said there is also a permanent drop-off box at the Meridian Police Department.
According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), over 16 million Americans misused prescription medication in 2020. Most of those individuals got the medications from family and friends, by getting into the home medicine cabinet. The highest number of abusers came from young adults between the ages of 18 and 25.
Idaho is not immune to the problem. Approximately 55,000 Idahoans, age 12 and older, misused prescription pain relievers between 2019 and 2020, according to NSDUH.
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